For the next few hours, I mulled over the new information as we rode through the Middle Lands. Calix stayed close by, his brows pulling sharply together whenever he looked at me, but he did not press me to speak. I wondered if we would ever have the opportunity to bask in the glow of our mate bond, or if we were doomed to spend our lives grabbing stolen moments between one crises and the next.

Overhead, the spring green leaves cloaking the branches gave way to a riot of red, orange, and yellow, and the rain fresh scent in the air shifted to something chillier and spiced with smoke and cedar. I froze, eyes widening as I looked all around, taking in the splendor of the autumn woods.

"A-are we in the Autumn Court?"

Lorcan rode past me, his face twisted with distaste. "Yes."

I wiggled in my saddle like an overly excited child, earning a chuckle from Calix. He did not appear half as irritated as his brother to be in the Autumn Court, but then I had never felt like Calix was truly at home in the Summer Court—not the way Lorcan was.

"Perhaps your mother is an Autumn Fae," Calix whispered, picking up my hand and kissing the knuckles. "It would explain your sudden delight."

"Perhaps she is," I said with genuine glee. "Fall and winter have always been my favorite seasons."

"Yes," Lorcan drawled, pressing his knees into his unicorn to turn the animal to face us. "It quite put her out upon meeting me when she learned she was in the Summer Court. And that I was blonde."

Calix sat up straight, looking for all the world like a preening cat. "Is that so? Why didn't you mention that?"

"Stop." I covered my face. "I was in shock, and I lost my filter. Summer isn't a bad thing... Just not my favorite thing."

"And him being blonde?"

Lorcan arched a brow as he waited for my response. I smirked. "Some things can't be helped. Besides, if he was brunette, he would have been too perfect."

"Oh, is that so?" Calix grumbled while Lorcan laughed.

"But why are we in the Autumn Court?" I asked. "Aventus was to the south in the Summer Court. Is this not in the opposite direction?"

That sobered the brothers. Calix replied, "Because we can't risk returning to the Summer Court. Not while Niamh is in power. The land might be dying because it is rejecting her claim, but it will still respond to her call for aid. This route is safer. We will ride along the fringes of the Autumn Court until we reach the sea. Then we will take a ship to Aventus."

"And our presence won't cause problems here?"

"As long as we move quickly and don't go into any cities, we will be fine. The Courts only demand that a leader from another Court declares their arrival and purpose. Summer and Autumn have a cordial relationship, despite what some individuals may claim."

"No, you have a civil relationship with Princess Cyra. That isn't the same," Lorcan replied, cutting his eyes at me. "And I suspect once she learns that you're mated, that civility will disappear."

"Oh, that's how it is?" I aimed for a teasing tone and failed miserably. It didn't shock me that Calix had a sexual relationship with the Autumn princess. No Fae in their right mind would pass up an opportunity to be with him, but I suddenly felt very grungy and unattractive. At least our travels should keep us far away from the palace.

"It hasn't been that way for a long time."

Tamping down my jealousy, I plucked a leaf from a low-hanging branch. Golden veins threaded the frail yellow blade, and whenever I passed through a shaft of sunlight, they shimmered. It set off a ripple effect amongst all the leaves, each one brightening as if the sun had struck it directly, and all the forest glittered.

"How?" I gasped, shading my eyes against the brightness.

Lorcan rolled his eyes. "Because the Autumn Court cannot resist flashy magic."

Leaves rustled together in the wind and formed a swirling cyclone on the road in front of us.. When the wind died, they drifted back to the ground, and where the cyclone had been stood a Fae female.

"Funny. I think your real complaint is that our magic is prettier than yours, Lorcan. You've never liked being second." Her amber eyes cut to Calix, and her plump, berry colored lips stretched into a feral smile.

"Princess Cyra, I'm guessing," I hissed at my mate, hoping very much that he felt the full force of my displeasure.

After meeting so many Fae at the Samhain ball, I thought I knew what beautiful looked like. I was wrong. Where my hair was a red so pale it was nearly pink, hers was the color of bright embers, and it hung in heavy waves below her waist. A waist that defied reality as it tapered in sharply over wide hips.

If I only had to compete against her perfect porn star body, I might not have been overly worried. My body was nothing to sneeze at, and I thought my breasts were better than hers. It was an easy comparison, considering the neckline of her dress plunged to her belly button.

Unfortunately, her face was a work of art. Her eyes and lips were the most prominent features in her porcelain, pointed face. Dark, curling lashes that grew longer at the outer corners framed glowing amber eyes. Her Grecian nose had a few freckles and her lips appeared bee stung, a look that many women tried to achieve with fillers but often end up looking fake.

"Like what you see?" she asked, scraping a sharp canine over her bottom lip as she twirled a strand of hair around her finger.

Lorcan covered his mouth with his fist to cover a laugh, and Calix's bored expression turned sour. "Cyra, what are you doing here?"

"Do you think we wouldn't feel you enter our territory?"

"We have broken no laws."

She tilted her head to the side, and I spied the black tips of fox ears protruding through her hair. They twitched as she watched us.

"No, you haven't, but I thought perhaps you might be here to fulfill one."

Calix paled. "That is no longer an option."

"What are you talking about?" I demanded. Lorcan shook his head, but I ignored him. I was done being in the dark.

Cyra pressed her hands over her flat stomach. "Calix signed a breeding contract the last time he was here. For the right of passage in our lands, the next time he came to the Autumn Court, he would give me an heir."